It was a non-title fight, so I just wanted to fight freely. It went well.

Pride:

Please tell us about the finish.

Gomi:

When I jabbed Ishida and he fell on his butt, I could already see it in his eyes. The punches had hurt him a lot.

Pride:

Ishida was really staring at your before the fight.

Gomi:

I try not to look at my opponents in the eyes. Was he staring at me? Well, this was my 3rd SHOCKWAVE, so I was relaxed when I fought.

Pride:

You were back in top form in this fight.

Gomi:

Yeah. It was good because people were saying that he's a bad match-up for me.

Pride:

Any difficulties/

Gomi:

I'm a professional so the worst thing for me is not being seen (by the fans). If the fans can't see me, I'm not a professional. That's my reason for living.

Pride:

Are you motivated again?

Gomi:

Yes. I want to take on the world. I've got two years until I turn 30, so I want to fight freely.

Pride:

Take on the world?

Gomi:

I love PRIDE, so I hope the will continue to do their best, just like they are now. I want the entire world to see us. As a professional, I'm aiming for a bigger status.

Pride:

Specifically, who would you like to fight?

Gomi:

Melendez, Sean Sherk. Well, Sherk would be an easy win. I'd like to take my time and fight Matt Hughes and BJ Penn.

Pride:

Do you mean that you want to enter the UFC as a representative of PRIDE?

Gomi:

Yes. When I fight in PRIDE, it's always on a great stage like today. I want to make an appeal to the world in Las Vegas.

Pride:

How about the Lightweight Grand Prix?

Gomi:

Just seed me into the Grand Prix finals. (laughing) Of course, I'd prefer a single match. I'm always pressured before my fights but I feel relieved today. The younger students at my gym supported me. I hope they will fight here in a few years. I'm going to take them out to eat tonight. I'm really glad there are kids that admire me. I wanted to go directly to my gym students and thank them as soon as I won. The supported me in my year-end return. When we started in July, I wasn't able to have a celebration party with the students so I'm looking forward to talking with them now.

Pride:

Will you fight in the February Las Vegas event next?

Gomi:

Yes. The rules make it difficult to get injured. I will try not to play around too much in January. (laughing) I played around too much earlier this year. (laughing) I've got my gym students, so everything will be fine.

Pride:

Genki Sudo announced his retirement. Did you know about that?

Gomi:

I heard about it. To be honest, it's sad. I want him to do his best in martial arts and on TV. It's sad.